Orange County, California - three authors talking over wine - that's how we began. Said one of the authors, "What if we'd market our books together? They're not fairy tales. They're not books that teach counting or the ABC's, of course. They're not early rhyming or science books. They're not fairy tales.

"Ah, replied the second, "Our children's books are concept books that are meant to empower - to add to a child's self-esteem. Ah, ha! That's what they all have in common. Let's do it. Together is always stronger than alone."

Well, of course, there was a third author there quietly sipping her wine. She's working on her fourth novel, not a children's book, but being a good sport and supportive to boot, she suddenly slammed her Chardonnay on the table as if hit by a bolt of lightning and shouted, "Wait! I know a perfect author for you. She's an O.T. friend in Texas who has also written a children's book to build self-esteem. I'll put you in touch."

By the time the week was over we added our friend's friend plus another member of our Orange County writing group, We were on road to becoming a team, a co-op, a consortium if you will. Our mission: to create synergy,

SERENDIPITY

In looking to see whether SpecialBooksForSpecialKids.com was available, Billie Kelpin found that there was a domain name close to that: SpecialBooksBYSpecialKids.org Assured that she wasn't infringing on a website with the same concept, she went ahead with purchasing the domain names listed above. As work on our website continued in April and May of 2017, a most touching news piece was aired on "World News Tonight" with David Muir on ABC. The subject of the interview was an amazing young man, Chris Ulmer, who is videotaping children throughout the country who rarely have the spotlight. Chris Ulmer just happens to be the person has the domain name we came across for the first time last week in researching our own name. We are pleased to post that video here. Chris also has a presence on FB at https://www.facebook.com/specialbooksbyspecialkids/ and his website accepts donation for his project at www.specialbooksbyspecialkids.org.

OUR NAME

Of course, the name "special books" came to us immediately because their appeal is to all young children, but especially the child who feels bullied, the child who is different, the child who feels left out, no matter what the reason. We added "for special kids" because often it is the special child who feels this way. Since our books are for all children and all children are amazing, we deliberated over which name to use. Finally, we decided to use BOTH. Whether you go to SpecialBooksForSpecialKids.com or SpecialBooksForAmazingKids.com you'll get here,​